Two Tickets to Paradise – Monday: Air

Did you miss me?

Thanks to an act of God, Jon and I were able to escape for a week. After a very long weekend spent celebrating the weekend of my brother and sister (heehee! I have a sister!) the four of us trooped down to the newlyweds house on Manhattan Beach and rested up for some trips to tropical paradise.

I was going to share all our adventures here, but that post got REALLY long. So. In the interest of not boring you and wholeheartedly embracing the opportunity to relive my vacation, let’s take it from the top – day by day.

The muppets had their own vacation planned at camp Gramma and Grampa. Jon and I set off to experience utopia – complete with legends, myths and the perfect intermingling of all the elements.

Monday: Air

Monday morning, bright and early (6:45 a.m. to be exact-ish) my now married baby bro schlepped us down to LAX airport. (He and his bride would return later in the day for their own trip to Tahiti.)

Paradise Found!

Amazingly, our flight was on time. At 9:08 a.m. our flight rose high above the Pacific Ocean – aimed at the tropical islands to the west. I’m pretty sure that when we die, St. Peter will greet us in a See’s Candy shope before leading us through the pearly gates into Hawaii. Our flight landed in Maui, where we had a three-hour layover. Did you know that even layovers are easy and enjoyable in paradise?

Heaven

When we landed in Kona, HI, we walked out into the muggy October air – the scent of plumeria intoxicating on the autumn Hawaiian breeze (with or without the enhancement of a fruity beach beverage). Black lava rock surrounded us with small brush sprouts dotting the landscape.

I was in awe.

Once we reached our destination, the Fairmont Orchid, we were lei’d and then took a walk along the beach.

I. Found. My. Turtles! All was well with the world. The honus say hello. (Although, my goal was to swim with the turtles so I couldn’t’ leave just yet.) We spent the evening drinking our allotment of fruity adult beverages on the resort patio – which overlooked the resting honus, thatched hut roof restaurant bars on the shores of the ocean lagoon.

We were serenaded by a Hawaiian acoustic guitarist’s renditions of Over The Rainbow and Tiny Bubbles. But when he started playing Knocking on Heaven’s Door and other songs by Four Non-Blondes, it was time to retire.

Paradise Found. And we had a big week awaiting.